Management reshuffle at Porsche sales companies worldwide

Porsche AG has reassigned responsibilities for important sales regions and subsidiaries of the sports car manufacturer:
Following his successful expansion of the subsidiary in China since 2007 Helmut Broker is set to take over the leadership of the
sales region Overseas and Growth Markets (Middle East, Africa, India, South-East Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Japan and Latin America) as of July 1, 2013. Deesch Papke, who has successfully developed this sales region over the last two years, will in turn be appointed as the new CEO of Porsche in China.

"Over the past years Helmut Broker and Deesch Papke have proven that they, along with their teams, can turn far-reaching responsibility into profitable growth for Porsche," said Bernhard Maier, Member of the Board Sales and Marketing at Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. "We would like to thank them both for this and wish them continued success in their new roles and markets."

Helmut Broker (56) has a background in the cross-continental automotive industry stretching back over 26 years; before joining Porsche in 2007 he worked for many years for BMW in Asia, Australia, Middle East and North America. Over the past six years since his appointment at Porsche the number of shipments of the sports car manufacturer in China, Hong Kong and Macau has increased more than six-fold, from 4,856 in 2007 to more than 31,205 vehicles in 2012. This makes China the second largest market for the Porsche brand.

Deesch Papke (51) can also call on many years of experience in various markets and brands in the global automotive industry. Before joining Porsche, he held management roles at Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Land Rover and Volvo in South Africa and in Russia. He joined the sports car manufacturer in 2005 as head of the subsidiary Porsche Middle East and Africa in Dubai. During his time as head of the entire sales region Overseas and Growth Markets Papke increased the number of shipments to over 22,000 in 2012.

"The international exchange and the redeployment of experience of our sales leaders supports the future growth targets of the Porsche Strategy 2018 and ensures that know-how is passed on within the sales organisations," added Maier in the light of the staff changes. In the second half of the year we will see the following new appointments within the sales regions:
Joe Lawrence (44), currently Managing Director at Porsche Canada, will be appointed as Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Porsche Cars North America, making him responsible for the largest single market for the sports car manufacturer with over 35,000 of more than 141,000 shipped vehicles at last count. His successor at Porsche Canada will be announced soon. In the growth region Overseas and Growth Markets, for which Helmut Broker will be assuming responsibility, Michael Bartsch (54), currently COO for North America, will take over as Managing Director of Porsche Cars Australia. His predecessor in this role, Michael Winkler (50) will also be taking on a new international sales function. Christer Ekberg (57), currently Managing Director of Porsche Asia Pacific, is to become the new Managing Director of Porsche Middle East and Africa. George Wills (46) will be relocating from Dubai to take over as Managing Director of Porsche Latin America from Matthias Bruck (41), who has expanded and consolidated Porsche's position in the growth markets of Middle South America in recent years. He will also be assuming a new management position as Managing Director.

Posted in: Bernhard Maier,Canada,China,Christer Ekberg,Deesch Papke,George Wills,Helmut Broker,International,Joe Lawrence,Matthias Bruck,Michael Bartsch,Michael Winkler,New Appointment,North America,Porsche